New Beer Sunday (Week 643)

Good Evening NBS & Happy Father's Day to all the fathers and dads at the bar.

Tonight I'm going to have another selection from the Beer Camp 12 pack.



16 oz canned 4/27/17 poured into a .5L seidel mug at fridge temp. The beer pours a bright copper color with short lived off white head. No lacing and just a few bubbles on top after several minutes. Aroma is lager like and possibly showing a bit of the ginger & cayenne listed on the can. The flavor is fairly typical lager with smooth malt presence. Then, things change. I get a little ginger and oak before things get crazy. Big ginger & cayenne taste linger well after the swallow. It doesn't burn, just a nice heat. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, soft and finishes semi dry. Overall, good. This is one from the pack I was unsure about. Glad I tried it here with you all. Heading over to enter a review and put some numbers to it. Cheers

 

Pours golden straw with a quickly dissipating head.
The aroma is wheat, with a light lemony tartness.
The flavor is a light lemony sourness that you always get in this style with a light bready malt. It finishes with a mild dry grainy bitterness and some lingering tartness.
It's a super refreshing summer beer, and one of the few Berliners I've had that aren't puckeringly sour. It's very good, but I've had others in the style I enjoy more.
4.18/5 it's really good, I just like mine more tart.

 

You can try doing it as a report for your own post though it won't happen quickly if no mods are on line.

 

that was actually my first thought, "is this beer tainted" I checked some other reviews on the beer and they were all positive mentioning the "sour" quality. My guess is the flavors are spot on with what the brewery intended. I really only have 1 experience with a true sour and that was gand tetons 2014 American sour and that was tart....pucker my puss tart.

I'll post a follow up after I drink the 2nd but yes, it was very fun and interesting drink!

 

Last new one for me today:


Cycler's 55-11 Imperial Red Ale

The review:
https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/30162/99333/?ba=Premo88#review
3.59 (-1.1% rDev)

An "American strong ale", 55-11 is an aging Arrogant Bastard with all the fire taken out of it. My 6-pack is about a month and a half old, and the hops are pretty flat and dull. They are piney and somewhat tasty, but mostly I taste caramel/mango with a lingering generic bitterness in the aftertaste. Not terrible, but it's not a brew I'll bother with after these six. There good news is it has enough bitterness and overall flavor that it will make for a decent finishing beer to close out sessions.

Cheers!

 

Happy Father's Day, NBSers. I have a couple of beers for your perusal today that will range from one end of the beer nerd spectrum to the polar opposite end. First up, a sessionable saison.



4.29/5 rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

What an excellent sessionable saison from Jester King, a brewery that literally lives in that space. This particular beer (in collaboration with The Kernel out of London) pours a murky straw color, the head a bubbly bone white cap.

The aromas are the ubiquitous JK yeast - and hops. Juicy Citra hops. The taste is dominated by the funky yeast esters, but then the hops slip in, and at the very back of the taste, there's a slightly salty quality, similar to a gose. I just finished mowing my lawn after a cardio workout and lifting before I had this, so I was ready for a quencher.

CHECK!!!

Simply outstanding by the fine folks at Jester King. How they pack so much flavor into a 3.4% ABV beer is beyond my limited intellectual capabilities.

 

Happy Fathers Day all
Drinking this one for the first time

Local brewery right here in Cambridge, Ma.
DIPA 8.5 abv. rotating series this one features mosaic hops.
Smell and taste are complex, tropical as in pineapple and pine
Pours cloudy amber with a soft white head that dissipates quickly
Taste is complex as well, sweetie front then bang, a big bite of bitter.
Mouth feel is prickly and pretty dry.
Refreshing as hell, dank, fruity and hoppy. The name suits it. Fine representation of the style
If my Dad was around he say how can you drink that stuff, it's to bitter.
My Father's Day was awesome, surrounded by my kids and granddaughters. My wife hosts a cookout every year for both sides of the family, it's fun, a ton of work and very rewarding
My kids took care of me this year

Little do they know they are the reason I started drinking

 

Good evening NBS, hope everyone is enjoying the end of the weekend once again. Thanks to @cjgiant for getting us started off this week. Hope everyone is having a good Fathers day as well. I did not do anything special as I live a state away from everyone else. I did do some facetime chat with my dad/grandfather earlier. My Sister, BIL, and nephew showed up at their house mid call, so they were probably having dinner together at my parents house. Today I just did my normal laundry, bottle returns, and mini beer haul at my usual Sunday store. Found a couple new ones to check out, along with yesterday's random corner store stop. Review 5500 will be on Friday night, and I already have the beer chosen for the occasion. Got it last week through a friend. Good random timing.

New Beer:

Fantastic lambic! Lasting head retention and lacing on the glass. Aromas and flavors of big tart lemon, lime, pineapple, peach, pear, melon, green apple, white grape, hay, straw, grass, oak, leather, and musty Brett funk; with moderate wheat/cracker malt balance; some light oaken vanilla and pepper. Light-moderate fruity/lactic tartness and light yeast/oak tannin spice on the finish. Touch of fruit tang. Medium bodied; balanced bready/grainy wheat, lactic acid, and light tannins in the mouthfeel. Light-moderate increasing lactic dryness, zero puckering acidity. Absolutely fantastic drinkability. The Brett complexity is absolutely spot on with the level of funk, never overwhelming. Awesome balance against the Lacto. Nice oak presence and malt balance. Just a really incredible brew. I keep buying more of this series every time I see new ones. Always worth it. Far more hits than misses. 4.28


Excellent IPA. Amazing thick head retention and lasting lacing on the glass. Aromas of flavors of big grapefruit, tangerine, pineapple, peach, passion fruit, mango, lemon zest, orange peel, light pepper, and pine hops; with moderate honey, cracker, bready malt balance; and herbal, floral, grassy hop earthiness. Light-moderate pine, grassy, citrus peel, spicy bitterness on the finish. Medium bodied; balanced bready/grainy malt and sticky hops in the mouthfeel. Slight resins and increasing bitter dryness, no hop astringency. Moderately crisp and quite refreshing. Tastes like Citra, Centennial, Columbus, Amarillo or something. Really big fan of the hop profile. Dank, vibrant, and juicy hops; with a nice malt backbone. No residual sweetness. A very well balanced IPA, never aggressive. This is something I will return to soon. Got it off the singles shelf yesterday. 4.03


No day would be complete without camp. Pretty interesting! Aromas and flavors of big licorice, mint, anise, cola, lemon, apricot, orange peel, vanilla, cream, black tea, caramel, brown sugar, lightly toasted bread, light cocoa/nuttiness, and herbal/floral tea earthiness. A bit too strong on the spice in the aromas(but not overwhelming), much more balanced in the taste. Light herbal tea and tamarind spice bitterness on the finish. Medium-plus bodied lactose creaminess in the mouthfeel. Slight spice stickiness/dryness, no cloying sweetness. Thoroughly enjoyed this; it takes a minute to get acquainted with what is going on. A bit odd at first. There is a surprising level of complexity from the spices alone, and it all comes together really well. Very drinkable too, not too heavy. 3.78


Another sour for the night. This is insane!! Aromas and flavors of huge sweet/sour/tangy cherries, raisin, plum, raspberry, blackberry, currant, red grape, lemon, lime, green apple, almond, vanilla, bourbon, toasted oak, brown sugar, caramel, and bread; with light notes of leathery funk, red wine vinegar, and pepper. Light-moderate fruity/lactic tart/sourness and light yeast/tannic oak spice on the finish. Medium-full bodied; balanced creamy/silky malt, lactic acid, and light fruit/oak tannins in the mouthfeel. Lightly increasing lactic/tannic dryness, minimal puckering. Absolutely fucking unreal. The complexity and balance between fruit, malts, lacto, and bourbon/wine barrels is perfect. Not much funk. Super drinkable, minimal warming 9.9%. I need to find this again. I was lucky recently, grabbed a lone last bottle off the shelf some where. Once of the best fruited wild ales I've ever had. Really spot on for a Flanders red ale-style. 4.52


Cheers, have a good night NBS!

 

Beer Wolf IPA from Iron Horse Brewing in Ellensburg WA. Nice IPA. Great color, fairly hoppy, nice bite and a dry finish which I just adore in a beer.
The bear in the pix is yard art in our memorial garden. Have a piece of art for all of our loved ones who have passed away. The bear is for my Russian friend Alex the Russian bear who passed away in 2013. Long story short he grabbed his family littlery with only the clothes on their back and fled the USSR. when it collapsed, it was that or be killed in the genocide that took place. He ended up in Idaho and we became very close. His story is breathtaking to say the least. I miss him everyday, R.I.P my comrade.
Cheers! Happy Father's Day to all the dad's playing along at home!!

 

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/44376/282876/



16 oz, canned 6/6/17.
Moderate pour yields a one + inch white head over a medium amber body with fairly nice lacing. Nose of citrus and dank pine with slight tropical fruit and a slight floral attribute. Bitter taste with dank flavors of pine, grapefruit pith, and a very slight fruitiness. Nice feel and overall a very good job at an American IPA. [Not all IPAs produced in New England (or Vermont for that matter) should be lumped into the category called NE IPA's.] This, to me, leans a bit more to a West Coast style IPA; a section of America to the west.
Cheers!

3.84/5 rDev +11%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

 

#2, at the other end of the beer nerd universe, this beer sits and waits for me. I am ready to finally climb into the ring with this iconic beer.



4.69/5 rDev +7.1%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

I've been trying to acquire this for awhile, so when an opportunity to get a couple of bombers presented itself, I leapt at it. I'm SOOOOO glad that I did.

When I am confronting a big stout, the first thing I look at is the head - is it dense enough and brawny enough to warrant sitting atop a majestic stout?

A resounding "Yes!!!" in this case. Dark tan head, perched atop an inky black body. All the specified (on the bottle label) aromas are present - cocoa nibs, vanilla beans, cinnamon, habanero peppers, and they blend together perfectly.

The taste ..... the taste follows the aromas, but the habanero takes a front seat - or actually, a back seat, because the habanero shows up at the back of the taste, and does not relinquish control.

I would compare this very favorably with Abraxas. I don't say that lightly.

Happy Father's Day, NBSers.

 

Huh, good to know. Glad you enjoyed it anyway!

On to my second and final NBS entry for this week, and it's a big one. This brewery has come a long way over just a couple years, and I have been enjoying their stuff quite a bit since Miles & Miles (their Citra/Amarillo dry-hopped pale ale) came out some time early last year. I remember having a bottle of Company, their first release in the "Off the Grid" series of stronger beers, a couple years ago and not being the biggest fan. I think they hired a new brewmaster somewhat recently, though, and I've been really enjoying some of their new lineup, including their unique hoppy saison, Rustique. Anyway, on to this new one...



This was a $10 bomber like the other OtG series stuff, but I had high hopes for it. A 9% sour red aged on oak staves once used to age red wine? I'm absolutely down for that. Her Highness pours a deep reddish amber/bronzed color with a quickly building head that, every now and then, manages to cultivate some slight density. This quickly fizzles away over the course of 5-10 seconds, though, in an almost soda-like fashion. Clumps of yeast in suspension come out with each small pour, floating atop the ephemeral foam and sinking into the beer's body. Interesting. I really like the color here... the carbonation seems prickly and moderately-highly active, but the quick dissipation of the head left me feeling a bit unregaled (really reaching for a royalty-related word to describe my feelings here, please pardon me ).

Nose is heavy on the tannic and neutral oak notes with some raspberry and cranberry scents kicking around as well. Definitely has a bit of that funky Flemish acetic-ish note along with Demerara sugar, caramel and plum notes in here too as it warms. Red grape skin, slight sniff of ethanol... overall, very solid but ever-so-slightly muted compared to what I felt like it would be.

Luckily, the palate picks up the slack with a nearly-overwhelming hit of acidity and strong berry flavors. Raspberry and cranberry are, once again, the biggest elements here in terms of fruit-like flavors. Very nice malty mid-palate reaching once again into Flemish red territory, but with an almost "English strong ale" bent to the malt bill. Lots of chewy, toffee-esque goodness here, which meshes well with the bracing sourness. I mean, this definitely leans towards the American wild ale side of the spectrum instead of being an authentic "Flemish red," as there's just so much lingering pucker to it... even the finish is full of strong tart berry flavors. As it warms, I get more Demerara/brown sugar, caramel and red grape.

Feel is heavier bodied, for sure, with a good "sipping" quality which comes from both the way this sits on the tongue as well as its acid profile. Carbonation is a bit more moderate than I expected from the way it was bubbling as it initially hit my glass, though I guess that could explain why the head died down very quickly with each pour. Overall, this is really good and I may return to the store and get another one. I noticed that the bottle says "made for aging" on it, so there's a chance this might see 6-8 months of cellar time just for fun now that I know it's a worthwhile offering.

I'm pairing some absolutely insane music with this beer, and it's working out quite well. This is the third album from Australian madmen Impetuous Ritual, and it just came out the other day. If thou feelest thineself ready for such a challenge, prepare for an onslaught of doomed, noisy, blown-out, fucked-up metal of death from the opprobrious underworld...



https://profoundlorerecords.bandcamp.com/album/blight-upon-martyred-sentience

Cheers!

 

This pours dark and oily, like diluted molasses. Probably the thickest, most syrupy looking beer I've ever seen.That said, it's not overly sweet , nor has an exceptionally thick feel. The aroma is of coconut extract, wood, and (especially) booze , which comes across as a combination of bourbon and brandy.

Flavor is of a chocolate milkshake, with coconut , cognac, and a touch of maple wood during the growing season, when the sap is running. ( A flashback to when I heated with wood, and might have inhaled/tasted it while cutting.) A barely-there, pleasant bitterness, like unsweetened chocolate, lingers on the finish.The alcohol, though slightly noticeable, seems like half its actual 12%.

Overall quite good, though not my normal thing. I'd probably be praising it more profusely if I was sipping this in front of a late October fire, after stacking firewood, or shoveling snow.

 

I agree 100% Maybe we shouldn't say too many good things about these guys! And yes, I am a Dad and have two grown kids both of whom live in North Carolina. Thankfully, they share my interest in good beer! Cheers!

 

Honestly its silly you cant do that and also the edit time used to be 30 minutes. I think 15 is a little stingy.

 

Fresh? Yeah, awesome! 6? days old when I first had it. Floating-on-a-cloud fluffy. One of the best ones I've had, of any sort.

 

New Beer Sunday: A hoppy DIPA (or Triple IPA?)

Evenin' NBSers with special "Howdy" to those who hope for hops upfront and in their face.

Well, things have wound down for the day and so it's time for another new IPA. This evenin's new IPA is the Sierra Nevada Hoptimum in the 2017 edition. (Since this is new to me I can't say whether it is improved or not.)

As usual, my review, subject to revision till I finish the beer, can be found here:

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/140/55939/?ba=drtth#review

This beer is all about the hops with a bit of malt backbone to soften but not conceal their bitterness. The aromas and flavors are a mix of resin, grapefruit zest, some tropical and other fruits with even just a hint of floral character. Where the beer really shines is in the interplay of flavors and the way they fade away. First the grapefruit and resin are upfront. Then they move to the background and the fruits (e.g., mango and peach) come forward. As they fade away the end of the show is left a gentle bitterness that gradually fades away into dryness. This is quite a good beer, as we'd expect from Sierra Nevada, and a really good choice for those who crave lots of hops. For me, it's a beer I'll revisit occasionally but a beer of this intensity is not something I'd repeat every night.

Here’s a bit more of that late 50's - 60's singer, actor and songwriter, Bobby Darin, with another of his more famous hits. (A note for those who think they don’t like opera, "Mack the Knife" was originally written in German and was part a work by Kurt Weill called Die Dreigroschenoper, which in English is The Threepenny Opera. Much the same as some beers seem to straddle the fuzzy line between two different styles, this work straddles that fuzzy line between opera and musical so it is sometimes called a “Light Opera.” )

Mack the Knife

Cheers, all!

 

Another

Happy New Triple IPA Sunday!

Another tasty brew from Melvin. Hopefully I can get some more tomorrow.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/24056/266397/?ba=Wasatch#review

Cheers!

 

Happy Father's Day! Settling in after dinner, and time for a new beer.

I'm a huge fan of Stone's Ruinten so I had to check out the latest version with orange peel and vanilla. Although it's a good beer, the vanilla is a little overpowering and it comes off sweeter than I prefer. Think I will stick with the original...



Poured from 22 oz bomber dated 5/26/2017.

A: Clear golden orange with 1-2 finger white head. Nice retention and light to moderate lacing.

S: Candied oranges mixed with vanilla beans. Fruity citrus with tangerine, grapefruit, and peaches.

T: Big punch of vanilla and orange zest with dank resinous hops. More pronounced sweetness than I was expecting.

M: Medium body with average carbonation. Finishes a little sweet.

O: Very enjoyable and unique beer but the vanilla almost overpowers the flavors, and the sweetness detracts from the overall experience. Glad I tried it but I much prefer the original.

 

Nice to see you , Dave. To dead camera batteries! Cheers!